Decorating with Tongue-in-Cheek Antiques

Antiques with a quirky attitude and clever eye.

Antiques dealer Elizabeth Stetson leaves no stone unturned in her search for vintage furniture and accessories that appeal to her self-described tongue-in-cheek sensibility. And nowhere is this engagingly quirky attitude and clever eye more apparent than behind the doors of her historic Newport, R.I., home.

1 of 11

Keith Scott Morton

Tole Trays

"Artistic training -- I don't have any," admits Elizabeth Stetson. "But I do think I have a flair for making something out of nothing," says this former owner of an antiques shop. "And I'm not afraid to experiment." Elizabeth first fell into the business with friends. Until that time she had her hands full as mother to her sons Alex, David, and Joshua. Even though she has closed her Newport, R.I., shop, Stetson and Sons, Elizabeth continues to sell these wares on eBay.

Pictured: Elizabeth's collection of tole trays.

2 of 11

Keith Scott Morton

Powder Room Mural

Currently, Elizabeth admits with a laugh, she is in a "deep phase," referring to wall color. In point of fact, it's this willingness to poke fun at herself that makes a visit to her home so enjoyable, with a subtle surprise to be discovered around every corner.

Pictured: A mural in the powder room mimics the style of early-19th-century New England painter Rufus Porter.

3 of 11

Keith Scott Morton

Pitcher of Peonies

Elizabeth, by inclination as well as necessity, needed to renovate and decorate on a budget. Fortunately, her brother Bill, a contractor, worked for the "family rate," enlarging the kitchen by borrowing space from a powder room. "Every room was originally painted blue," she laments. "Let's just say that, cosmetically, it needed work." Elizabeth counts many craftspeople among her personal friends. And often they are willing to barter their services for pieces in her inventory that they've fallen in love with. "From a money standpoint, the arrangement works well for everyone," she says.

Constantly reinventing the interiors of her historic two-story clapboard home, purchased in 1998, however, is an ongoing occupation. When she first moved in, the house required a new roof and kitchen.

Pictured: The guest room's antique painted bed with vintage quilt.

5 of 11

Keith Scott Morton

Colonial Parlor

Elizabeth Stetson employs the first-floor parlor of her 1780 center-chimney clapboard colonial as a workroom. One of her many works in progress: transforming a store-bought plywood dollhouse into an 18th-century Swedish-style manor.

In Elizabeth's office, the trompe l'oeil paneling painted by friend Odette Holty gives the wall a three-dimensional quality. Aged fabrics are also much loved by Elizabeth, who sewed the flowered throw pillows from an old remnant of bark cloth. "To me, vintage fabrics have a special warmth," she says.

7 of 11

Keith Scott Morton

Clock Faces

Because she has many collections -- particularly tole trays, colanders, and clock faces -- Elizabeth often rotates the mini-tableaux she creates. "It's something I enjoy doing," she says. "Usually, I group like objects together." Elizabeth comes by this talent naturally; her mother once worked as a window dresser.

8 of 11

Keith Scott Morton

Navy Living Room With Antique Clock

Found objects inspire Elizabeth's choices. For example, the deep blue background of a marine oil painting she restored was the catalyst hue for her living-room walls. A trompe l'oeil case clock, also painted by Odette, with an actual antique face affixed to the wall, seems to pop from the recesses of the corner.

9 of 11

Keith Scott Morton

Thrifty Chic Kitchen

1. A Framed Print

This rendering of Old Glory, circa 1930s, is part of an ever-changing display area on Elizabeth's kitchen wall.

2. An Old Tole Tray

From Elizabeth's collection. She usually buys them pitted or rusted, only to "improve" them with découpage.

3. Pendant Fixtures

The lights began as two shades in a junk shop. An ironworker friend added the tops and chains; the lamps were then wired and made functional. Elizabeth painted the exteriors black and the interiors gold to cast a warm glow.

4. Two-Tiered Plate Rack

Friends have so admired this useful storage piece that Elizabeth's brother Richard is now reproducing it in quantity for her to sell on the Internet.

5. From the '50s

This fan still works. "I thought it was a cool-looking thing," says Elizabeth.

6. A Steel Cabinet

Got for $75, its top was replaced by Elizabeth with a section of old butcher block, and wheels were added, too.

"I buy the not so perfect and things I feel a connection to. There's no rhyme or reason. I might like the color, or the feel, or the shape. My style is mish-mash and eclectic. What's for certain is: I don't like new!"

Elizabeth's kitchen is a cornucopia of others' cast-offs. For her storage needs, she found a glass-front cabinet at a flea market. "Because it had no back, no one else wanted it," she explains. The salvaged woodwork behind it once graced her shop. With the 12- to 16-inch sections painstakingly re-pieced together, the paneling now looks original to the house. An old wooden column, another find, raises the stature of a vintage colander from her collection.

11 of 11

Keith Scott Morton

Bedroom with Nightime Sky Walls

To create the color for the master-bedroom walls, Elizabeth mixed black paint with the darkest shade of navy she could find. Odette brushed on the shadow-and-cloud effect and the gold and silver metallic stars. A stack of vintage suitcases is used for out-of season storage and doubles as a bedside table. An old garden gate makes a unique headboard.

A Part of Hearst Digital Media
Country Living participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites.